All good things (and bad things, I will add) come to an end. We thoroughly enjoyed our month at Solitude in Big Cottonwood Canyon, but we are moving on to the next adventure. We have moved back to Centerville for a few days to regroup and repack and then we are hitting the road!
Hiking in the canyon was definitely one of the perks of October. We hiked to Lake Solitude and I got to join my friend Karma and her hiking group, the Crone Rangers, for a pre-Halloween walk to Willow Lake. No matter the conditions, whether snowy, muddy, or cold, hiking was always invigorating. We enjoyed being close to the valley, so we could pop down and meet up with people. We loved having lunch with Nathan’s cousin, Rachelle, and I had a much-needed dinner with my ballet buddies. We had another delicious dinner with Nathan’s local siblings and played games. October was a great month!
We’ve also been working on some improvements to Margaret’s house here in Centerville. We’ve been painting rooms one at a time and Nathan has done a lot of clean out and reorganizing. He’s a great son. The contractor who is building her new house says that excavation will start this week. We are sorry that we won’t be here to enjoy seeing the first shovel-full.
Now it’s time to move along. We’ll be visiting family and also enjoying some beautiful nature, which is what we love to do! First, it’s a stop in Idaho to see my eldest brother, Torr, and his wife, Jane. Then on to Portland to see our youngest, El, and partner, Adia. We will check in next week from our Oregon perch overlooking the Pacific. Have a great week!
Paradise
Happy October! We hope you are enjoying this beautiful time of year! Some people dream of paradise on a quiet tropical beach, listening to the surf with a drink in hand. Not this girl! Give me mountains, especially drenched in autumn color, bursting with new spring leaves, or covered in snow. We are spending October in one of our favorite places–Big Cottonwood Canyon just east of the Salt Lake Valley. We are loving the gorgeous golden aspen with the deep pine greens. Hiking is great and so is the smell of fresh forest! Nathan’s sister, Liz, and her husband, Christian, joined us one morning for a lovely hike through the woods. We got to experience a powerful thunderstorm and then a full day of snowfall. Our condo for the month is just right for us and we love having access to a pool, hot tubs, sauna, and workout facilities. We especially like that we can pop back to the valley to do some shopping or see family and friends. So far, so good!
Fun Family Time
We have had a lovely couple of weeks in Utah. We’ve been able to rest and recover from five months of travel, help Nathan’s mom at her house, and spend time with family.
Full Circle
Five months ago we flew to Rome from Utah. We had a summer of trying new places and experiences and revisiting old favorites and now we’re back where we started. Since we get the question a lot, I thought I would share some of our favorites from our travels in Europe this year.